Liz Lalor is the author of  "A Homeopathic Guide to Partnership and Compatibility" published by North Atlantic Books and Dana Ullman of Homeopathic Educational Services available at http://www.homeopathic.com Her email is lalor@ozonline.com.au

This article is written with the aim of inspiring homeopaths to consider another way of perceiving how homeopathy can be applied to a modern-day problem faced by millions of women. Following is an outline of a fertility program I have used with 50 different women. I have taken on 50 women with infertility problems and have been successful with 40 babies born. My statistical success speaks for itself as being worthy to consider. I have decided not to write up an individual case, and I am acutely aware that this is not the traditional way to present articles for homeopathic magazines; however, the reason I am not writing up a case is that the individual cases are not outstanding or unusually characteristic of a disease or disorder, or more importantly of a constitutional remedy picture. I am treating women with the end result of a suppressive process that has been caused from them being on the Oral Contraceptive Pill (OCP) for too long. I am not treating an individual that needs to be analysed constitutionally. I am treating lesional and drainage issues that need the homeopathic method devised by Vannier.

The following program I worked out using my own individual modified version of a Vannier method and the repertory for the symptoms that most matched the infertility issues that I was continually presented with. The program is designed to get women to ovulate. I am very aware that my program outlined below is a method using standardized prescribing. I have not written this article in support of standardized prescribing. This program came about because case after case I found myself using the same remedies in the same order, even though I continually repertorised each individual case. The statistical successes in my practice and in the practice of homeopaths around the world that have used my program justify consideration.

This program also includes Homeobotanical herbal treatment as drainage and nutritional treatment which may and most probably will put off some homeopaths. Having said that, it is a program that is also able to be used only using homeopathic remedies as drainage and I will outline all the homeopathic remedies that can also be used as drainage and lesional support in preference to herbal remedies. I have used Homeobotanical herbal treatment 12x potency, only because it is quicker and as the women that come to see me as patients are so anxious it has been helpful to get ovulation happening quickly. (The time frame is a difference of only one month). Consistently it is my experience that a woman can come to see me with fibroids or a history of PCOD, and I can get her pregnant within two cycles. This has happened over and over again, even if she has not been having a menstrual cycle or ovulating for several years.

On the other hand, I see young women who have been on the OCP for up to ten years, in some cases seventeen years, and even as little as three years and they do not ovulate and it has consistently taken me up to a year to get them pregnant, that is, until I came up with this program. Why? - Because the OCP is suppressing ovulation. What is also most worrying is that a lot of the younger women that I see have used the contraceptive medication in the form of an implant or injection continually, i.e. avoiding menstruation altogether. Young women, nowadays, often choose to have one, at the most two periods a year because of the inconvenience that bleeding can be to their work commitments. It is now an accepted known fact amongst doctors that it can take up to twelve months for the woman to ovulate after coming off the pill.

It is my clinical experience with the women who have come to see me that it can easily be two years and they still have not ovulated. If the woman is thirty-one that is still within a workable time frame, if the woman is thirty-eight the time clock is ticking too fast. Vannier devised a method that is absolutely perfect for the ill effects of the suppressive effects of the OCP. Vannier is based on the assumption that the remedies will work far better if you clear the pathways. The pathways in this case are accumulated toxicity and lesional damage from the suppression of ovulation by a drug called the OCP.

The most important issues of the cases are that the women are not ovulating, have no healthy mucus that the sperm can climb up, and have no sexual energy. The main emotional issue is of course the grief and sense of failure at not being able to conceive. None of these are symptoms that I am able to say are characteristically able to be written up as an individual case. Having said that the whole basis of constitutional prescribing is based on the individuality of how each patient perceives and interprets grief. I know from practice that it is not until you probe deep into a case that you will understand how the individual experience of grief will always be reflective of the remedy picture. A woman who has just lost a husband will always on the surface present with the same outward presentation of grief and use the same amount of tissues in my consulting room but it is not until I probe into the feeling and most importantly the sensation of the grief that I will be able to distinctively give the right remedy and not just the standardised prescription of Natrum muriaticum or Ignatia.

Consequently if I understand this essential concept of homeopathic practice and it is how I also practice as a homeopath, it is subsequently also essential to understand what is unique to this as my preferred form of treatment for this problem. I view the following program as an acute standardized prescribing treatment precisely because it is not exceptional, or unique, or unusual, or characteristic of a remedy picture. If the lack of ovulation is as I suspect associated with years of being on the OCP then a Vannier system that includes several detox drainage and lesional remedies as outlined below will be successful. The first time that I see someone I do not even necessarily take a full case as I would if I was for example using a Sankaran method or any other constitutional prescribing case taking method.

This woman has come to get pregnant. She is grieving in proportion to a situation that is not characteristically unique and she also not grieving in a unique or characteristic way that is reflective of a remedy sensation. As soon as I am able to establish she is no longer ovulating, I start the following fertility program. This program is a very small part of my practice and I do not profess to be a supporter of one approach to homeopathy over another; however, I do have forty babies and forty couples that are very happy. I have played around with this program considerably always swapping the order and introducing new remedies and taking out others, but if I do it as follows it works, that is my only gold card that I can hold up to support the publication of this program. I just ask that if you would like to work in this area just try it with a few patients, it has consistently come back to me from homeopaths using it, that the success rate matches my own statistical success, which is far higher than Western Medical In Vitro Fertilization programs.

Fertility Program

If there is a HX: of PCOD or miscarriage = use 1 dose only of Syphilinum 200 OR Carcinosin 200 first; you must decide which remedy based on the individual miasmic HX, as you would with any case taking, then continue the program with;

Folliculinum 200 1dose Day 10 of MX cycle. Folliculinum is given as a drainage remedy, to stimulate ovulation. The best Materia medica analyses of the use of Folliculinum and the damaging effects of the OCP are in Vermeulen Synoptic Materia Medica 2.

Thuja 200 OR Medorrhinum 200 = you must choose this remedy based on the individual HX. This remedy is to be taken day 14 of the MX. cycle. The Thuja or Medorrhinum is given as a miasmic remedy. The decision as to whether the case requires a specific miasmic remedy is individually made based on the presenting case HX. For example, I would use Thuja if the MX were scanty, or if the patient had ovarian polyps, and if they had not ovulated after the OCP. All the symptoms of polyps are covering the scope of Thuja including the damage from a suppressive drug. You must look up all the remedies in this program and take a through case study of the presenting symptoms the woman has relating to the presenting situation of being infertile. Thuja is for ill effects from vaccination; therefore it is also from ill effects of OCP because it is a remedy that covers the effects of suppression. That is why I also use it for scanty MX. I would use Medorrhinum if the mucus health was compromised by Candida caused also from being on the OCP. These are just a few examples to help in the repertory work.

The rest of the prescribing method is not worked out on an individual case basis. The choice of the remedies Natrum Muriaticum, Borax, and Sepia and Pulsatilla were made on the basis of repertorising case after case.

Natrum Muriaticum 200 1 dose/week. (Aside from Natrum Muriaticum covering MX problems and infertility it is of course a good choice to cover the grief and potential loss of not being able to conceive, however, in this case I use it solely and purely as a physical drainage remedy ). Natrum Muriaticum is a good remedy for poor quality mucus. NB the sperm get to where they have to go by swimming up the strings of healthy mucus, if the woman has Candida and acrid health in the vagina from the OCP the sperm will not get there. Natrum Muriaticum is also a good remedy for suppression.

Borax 30 1 dose/ day in morning. Know your remedies, Borax is good remedy also for thrush or Candida, but most importantly I use it because it helps estradiol absorb. Look at Vermeulen's Prisma Materia Medica. Vermeulen's Prisma has been an exceptional book in helping me understand the use of remedies. Borax I classify in this program as the lesional remedy.

Sepia 6c 1dose / day at night. Sepia I also classify in this program as a lesional remedy. I use Sepia here to deal with the suppression of sexual energy from the OCP.

Pulsatilla 30 1 dose / day in morning. (NB. I only use the Pulsatilla if there has been any HX of miscarriage.) Pulsatilla is also a lesional remedy and I use this also for suppression. Pulsatilla is also my preferred drainage remedy to use if I do not use the following herbal support. Pulsatilla is a good inflammatory remedy so the application for repeated miscarriage and its affinity for repair are applicable in this program.

As mentioned above this program also includes naturopathic treatment. If you want to discard this aspect and just use the homeopathic treatment this is of course up to the individual homeopath. The above program works without the use of herbs as drainage but I have noted it takes one more cycle or one month longer to get the woman to ovulate.

Herbal support: I use a herbal Australian Homeobotanical formula for drainage support. The herbs are all 12x potency. NB In Australia this is an expensive product and has not been accessible financially to some of my patients. I have not used it three times and have still been successful just using the homeopathic treatment.

The herbs are Cimicifuga racemosa, Caulophyllum thalictroides, Vitex angus-castus, Viburnum opulus, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Leonurus cardiaca, Anemone pulsatilla, Capsella bursa-pastoris, Mitchella repens, Dioscorea villosa.

As already mentioned consider Pulsatilla as a drainage remedy and I have also used it as an emotional support remedy if the woman is very emotional and teary after the second cycle and she is still not pregnant. Cimicifuga and Caulophyllum as homeopathic remedies are also of course excellent drainage and lesional remedies to use for ovarian suppression and potential miscarriage respectively. Dioscorea is an excellent remedy to consider after miscarriage to rebuild the health of the endometrium because of its strong progesterone based affinity. Once again I gained this information from Vermeulen's Prisma Materia Medica.

I would like to emphasise the need to use a fertility multi vitamin that contains folate. This is essential nutritional advice and although a lot of homeopaths do not use nutritional supplements folate is essential.
Nutritional support: I use a pregnancy multi vitamin with the right balance of folate and B vitamins, in particular B6 50mg and B 12 400mcg. 1/day. (NB make sure your vitamin formulas do not exceed 2500 IU of vitamin A.) Folate needs to be 500mcg a day.
A pregnancy Zinc formula is best with at least 25mg of Zinc and Magnesium 10mg.

I also use Tribulus (the standard tablet usually contains 2.83g,) which is a herb to increase FSH and estradiol. Day 5- day 14 of the MX. cycle, 1/day for the woman.

Day 1 is day one of the menstrual cycle, i.e. day one of bleeding. NB In Australia this is an expensive product and has not been accessible financially to some of my patients. I have not used it three times and have still been successful just using the homeopathic treatment. For the man Tribulus 1/day, and the Zinc 1/day can help to support sperm motility and libido. Libido can suffer with the stress of trying to have a baby. Stress causes high cortisol levels in the body. Cortisol affects sperm quality and motility. Excessive alcohol, tobacco and drug use, in particular excessive marijuana use also all affects sperm quality. (Past HX of sporting injuries can also affect production of sperm). Tribulus in men increases LH and testosterone. I am currently formulating a homeopathic program for men but my numbers are too small to publish even though so far I have a 100% success rate.

My advice of when it is most important to have sex is; Day 10 / 12 / 14 / 16 18. There is no sex for 3 days before Day 10 and no masturbation on the man's part. I also advise on ovulation sticks to make sure exactly when ovulation is occurring. (NB. I have had 8 women on my program that have ovulated Day 20 of the MX cycle, so monitor for the first and second month to be sure of your dates.)

I also provide counselling on how to have more fun sexually and to help lighten up their sex life. Most couples by the time they have come to see me are not having a good time. The stress of infertility can be very destructive to the best of relationships. This is not so hard to do, it can be simple advice like go out to dinner, talk, have fun, or book into a hotel in town, or go away for a romantic weekend.

The other advice is on diet. I use a diagnostic machine to determine a history of Candida. Mucus is meant to be noticeable and thick enough to stain the woman's underpants. When I ask this question, I consistently have the response that it used to be like that when they were a teenager or in their early twenties. Invariably it always has not been present since starting the OCP. If Candida is an issue it is important to get the patient to change their diet; Candida can impact directly on the consistency of mucus in the vagina. If the mucus is not of the right consistency it is not possible for sperm to be able to climb up the strings within the mucus. Along with this advice, I also emphasize the importance of not using perfumed products near the vagina. These products also upset vaginal health and Ph. Even something like perfumed toilet paper is an issue! If you are not aware of what a Candida diet is I am willing to email you the details.

I find it crucial working in an emotionally sensitive area to have strict guide lines and integrity. I do not work longer than 4 months with a couple. If I have not been successful within 4 months I do not believe that the above program is going to work. This is a contract that I outline at the first consultation. Infertility is a very tragic and emotionally damaging and painful experience. I believe that it is crucial to not promise something that you can not deliver. It is too traumatic. Every woman I have worked with is far healthier at the end of the above program than at the start, and it is this, that you must emphasise in the first consultation and do not string them along for a long time in the hope that it will work in the future. (Consistently the time clock for women is ticking and if you are not successful with the homeopathic treatment you have to trust that you are sending them off to conventional medical treatment in a far healthier state). I say this even though my statistical success rate is good because as health practitioners it is important to know when to admit you are not able to help someone.

The above program has not been successful with ten women. With 8 women I have no idea as to why it did not succeed. The age of two women, 46yrs and 43yrs; could be taken into consideration. Two other older women aged 42 and 40 managed to get pregnant but suffered a miscarriage and decided it was too traumatic to continue. Three other women have suffered miscarriages and are back on my program, so not yet a failure.

Two women that I did not get pregnant got pregnant first time on In Vitro Fertilization programs and it was reported back to me that the doctors were very surprised at the quality and numbers of eggs as well as the health of the endometrium. My sense is that if I had continued with these two women I would have got them pregnant within the following couple of months. I have had two women, who decided that a Candida diet was too hard at the very first consultation with me, and they decided to do IVF; I do not know if they were successful or not. (This is an issue to consider as some people find the Candida diet very difficult.)

Of the women who were successful I have had a wonderful and fulfilling time and I wish you all the best if you want to try my program